Xie Jun paused, then spoke again, trying to stop him. “Dad…”
“It was clearly her who gave birth to you yet you don’t resemble her at all.” Xie Tiancheng stared fixedly at Xie Wangyuan. “But her blood flows in your veins. What am I supposed to do with you?!”
In Xie Tiancheng’s heart, Xie Wangyuan was a filthy thief, someone who had not only stolen the life of the woman he loved but also attempted to defile every beautiful memory of her within this family.
And yet, Xie Wangyuan was also the last thing she had left behind.
Xie Tiancheng had resented him, hated him and regretted everything. His feelings toward Xie Wangyuan were tangled and complicated, until in the end he could only choose to keep him out of sight. Even when he occasionally returned home, he never paid Xie Wangyuan the slightest attention.
“Dad, you’ve lived more than half your life and to end up like this is truly pitiful,” Xie Wangyuan said with a soft laugh. “But the dead are dead.”
When Xie Wangyuan was young, he had also heard plenty of unpleasant remarks from others. Being told he was unlucky was nothing. Being told he brought death to others was nothing either.
The one who was alive now was him.
That was all.
A dull thud cut through the air, followed by a blunt pain at his temple. Xie Wangyuan’s expression didn’t change. He only slowly closed his eyes for a brief moment.
A small teacup fell onto the carpet beside the coffee table, bounced once, then rolled to Xie Wangyuan’s feet.
There was a sticky sensation as liquid slowly slid down from his forehead. Xie Wangyuan bent down, picked up the teacup and smiled. “Dad, the truth is always hard to hear, isn’t it?”
Xie Jun could no longer sit still. He spoke up to mediate. “It’s already very late, Dad. You should go upstairs and rest early. Wangyuan too, say less.”
“Fine. Fine.” Xie Tiancheng stood up and said in a low voice, “I want to see just how long you can keep forcing yourself with that illness but remember this, Xie Wangyuan, you owe her a life. You will forever owe her.”
Xie Wangyuan tossed the teacup back onto the coffee table. Only after Xie Tiancheng’s back disappeared upstairs did he turn to Xie Jun and ask, “Has he always been like this all these years? You never thought about taking him to a hospital? Or is it that, ”
Xie Wangyuan pointed at his own head.
“Was he already like this more than twenty years ago?”
“Wangyuan, Dad and Mom had always gotten along well. After Mom passed away, Dad was devastated. He’s never truly come out of it. You really shouldn’t provoke him so casually,” Xie Jun said.
Xie Wangyuan shrugged, raised a hand to wipe his forehead, smearing away the blood on his fingertips. “I just think he’s not very normal now.”
“About tonight… forget it. If you really dislike Lele that much, I’ll find time to talk to Dad,” Xie Jun said, rubbing his temples. “But stop hanging around with those Betas. There are plenty of suitable Omegas in our circle. I’ll arrange for you to meet them later.”
Xie Wangyuan raised one eyebrow, suspecting he’d misheard. “Brother, you want me to go on blind dates? With my current reputation, aren’t you afraid I’ll ruin it once and there won’t be a second chance?”
Xie Jun remained calm and unmoved. “Wangyuan, in this circle, are feelings and reputation really that important? Even if you left behind a hundred Omegas that night, there would still be plenty of people today who want to cling to you, to cling to the Xie family. If you don’t like it, that’s fine too. Just treat it as medicine to cure your illness. Wouldn’t that work?”
Listening to those familiar words, Xie Wangyuan couldn’t help but laugh. “Brother, you really are… worthy of being father and son.”
“I’ve said it before. I don’t need an Omega.” Xie Wangyuan pulled out a tissue and wiped his forehead carelessly as it started bleeding again. “And also, I think Dad’s psychological issues are pretty serious. You should take him to see a doctor sooner rather than later, so one day he doesn’t really lose his mind.”
“Wangyuan!”
Xie Wangyuan casually tossed the crumpled tissue into the trash. “I won’t disturb your rest anymore. I’m leaving.”
The car headlights flashed, tearing through the darkness of the courtyard.
Xie Wangyuan had a cigarette between his lips. Leaning out with one arm braced, he tilted his head back and counted.
Third floor, right side, the third window.
That was Xie Tiancheng’s bedroom.
There were many places in the villa that Xie Wangyuan had not been allowed to enter as a child but he had still secretly sneaked into Xie Tiancheng’s bedroom twice.
That was the only place where he could see photographs of the woman.
The regularly scheduled board meeting proceeded as usual. Beneath the calm surface, undercurrents surged. It was nearly noon by the time Qin Yu finally ended the meeting.
As he passed by the secretary’s office, one of the secretaries beside him sucked in a sharp breath and couldn’t help letting out a soft “wow,” then quickly covered her mouth and lowered her head when she remembered Qin Yu was right there.
The secretary’s office was still the same office, except now it was surrounded by flowers. Everywhere the eye could see was filled with roses and they were pinkish purple ones at that. The fragrance was rich and pervasive.
Several junior secretaries were gathered around the front desk, chatting animatedly.
“This is the first time I’ve ever seen so many roses. The sender is way too generous…”
“The front desk had to carry them back and forth several times. Who are they for?”
“Definitely not for me. My partner isn’t that romantic and he definitely doesn’t have that much money to throw around.”
“These are Cold Beauties. My favorite rose variety.”
“They’re called Cold Beauties?”
“Hey, there’s a card inside this bouquet!”
He Rui coughed lightly. “President Qin.”
The group of secretaries instantly scattered like startled birds.
Qin Yu’s brow furrowed even more tightly as he glanced around the secretary’s office, which was almost stuffed full of roses. “Whose are these?”
The secretaries exchanged looks, then all shook their heads.
“At first we just got a call from the front desk,” one of them said. “This kind of thing has happened occasionally before, so we didn’t think much of it and had them sent up. We didn’t expect there to be this many this time.”
Qin Yu swept his gaze around again and said calmly, “The company doesn’t interfere with your private emotional lives but this has already affected normal work. Take advantage of the lunch break and have the person involved clean this up themselves.”
“P.. President Qin…” The smallest secretary at the far edge spoke hesitantly. When Qin Yu looked over, she blurted it out in one breath. “Is it possible that these are for you and they were sent to the secretary’s office because they were afraid you wouldn’t accept them?”
As she looked at Qin Yu’s expression, her confidence dwindled and her voice grew quieter. “They’re definitely not for any of us. There’s a card inside. Maybe President Qin, you, you could take a look…”
The little secretary took a step back, stealing glances at Qin Yu’s movements.
Qin Yu asked once more but no one claimed them.
He stepped forward. The largest bouquet on the desk was layered with petals, blooming dazzlingly. There were still droplets of water clinging to them and a faint ring of fresh green showed at the base of the petals.
The wrapping paper underneath was also pink, printed with little hearts of various colors and the word “Love.” Tucked into the ribbon was a pink card, complete with a lipstick heart print.
Qin Yu slowly scanned everyone’s expressions, feeling as though he had seen this exact scene on some previous night.
He reached out, took the card and opened it. After just one glance at the signature, he closed it again and turned around. “Have someone come and dispose of these.”
Left behind, several secretaries whose gossip hungry hearts had gone unsatisfied stared at one another, itching with curiosity.
Qin Yu closed the door behind him with his free hand, casually tossing the card onto his desk as he loosened his tie.
The pink card stood out glaringly against the neat, cold black desk. Qin Yu opened a drawer and tossed the card deep inside, then closed his eyes to rest.
At five in the afternoon, Qin Yu finished handling his work and left the office. He Rui followed him into the elevator, holding a paper bag in his hand. “President Qin, would you like to take some stomach medicine first? Tonight…”
Qin Yu frowned.
He Rui reminded him, “Tonight is the board of directors’ dinner, at Chunshui Xifeng.”
The dinner had been scheduled together with the board meeting half a month ago. These past few days had been overwhelmingly busy. Qin Yu pinched the bridge of his nose, reached out to take the bag and gave a quiet “Mm.”
“And the materials you asked for last time, about Xie Wangyuan when he was abroad, as well as what happened last night between him and Yu…”
The elevator doors opened and He Rui abruptly fell silent.
The man who had sent the flowers was wearing a pair of sunglasses, with a bandage pasted on his forehead. His collar was wide open, a slim tie hanging loosely around his neck. He leaned there lazily, a frivolous smile still on his face.
As if he had just gotten out of someone’s bed, without even having time to properly get dressed before coming over.
“Qin, Third Young Master,” he said. “Did you like the flowers I sent this morning?”
The same form of address was deliberately drawn out this time, slow and lingering, wrapped in an extra layer of suggestive ambiguity.
Qin Yu paused for only a single second before continuing to turn his head toward He Rui. “Send it to my phone.”
The Alpha following close at his side had an overwhelmingly strong presence. He Rui nodded stiffly. “Yes.”
Xie Wangyuan took off his sunglasses and quickened his steps, hands in his pockets as he walked backward in front of Qin Yu. “More than a week without seeing each other and you’re this cold?”
Qin Yu looked straight at Xie Wangyuan, calm and unruffled. “Second Young Master Xie.”
Xie Wangyuan stopped as well, lifted his foot and lightly nudged Qin Yu’s shoe with the tip of his own. Smiling, he asked again, “So, did you like the flowers?”
Qin Yu walked past him. “I’m allergic to pollen.”
“Oh? That’s a pity,” Xie Wangyuan said, continuing to follow him, sighing theatrically. “I specifically picked that rose variety, you know.”
Outside the building, an eye catching bright pink sports car was parked. The various heart patterns on it made Qin Yu think of the card that had been tossed deep into his drawer that morning.
Such abstract aesthetic taste, aside from the person next to him, there was simply no second one like it in the world.
“But you can’t really blame me for that,” Xie Wangyuan continued. “Everyone says Third Young Master Qin is an aloof, untouchable flower on a high peak, not interested in men… oh, not interested in any kind of ‘color’ at all. Even if I wanted to find out what you like, I couldn’t get any information.”
“I’ll send you something else next time.” Xie Wangyuan didn’t mind Qin Yu’s cold attitude in the slightest. “And you didn’t even look at the card? Well, it’s fine either way. Get in the car, we can just head off directly.”
Qin Yu walked down the steps without even glancing sideways, only to be blocked by Xie Wangyuan once again.
“Where are you going?” Xie Wangyuan lifted his chin toward the sports car. “I even had you painted all over my car. Not going to take a look?”
Qin Yu’s gaze swept briefly over the bandage on Xie Wangyuan’s forehead. He left behind a single sentence, “Excuse me” and walked past him once more, getting into the car.
This time, they brushed past each other. There were no other people in the way, no lobby filled with scented air. That faint, clean minty scent was still pleasant.
Xie Wangyuan stood where he was, raised a hand to touch his nose, then turned back to his car, started the engine and followed after him.
“This little temper of yours…” he muttered with a chuckle. “It’s got quite the kick.”
✦ ✧ ✦
Vynellia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
✦ A tiny offering to the translator may please the spirits of the Realm. ☕
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
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ChaptersChapter 1 · A Beta who looks particularly attractiveChapter 2 · Illegitimate child? BetaChapter 3 · Am I going to kick a hornet’s nest?Chapter 4 · A banquet that only Betas can attendChapter 5 · The young man’s heart was wastedChapter 6 · What’s so fun about Beta?Chapter 7 · Your dad has too many loversChapter 8 · Date with a ‘beautyChapter 9 · Long Time no see…Chapter 10 · He’ll definitely be the dominant oneChapter 11 · Seeing Qin Yu was like a dog seeing a bone.Chapter 12 · Young Master Qin, what a coincidenceChapter 13 · I don’t like things that other people have touched.Chapter 14 · Just call him “little brother”Chapter 15 · Are you going to pursue Xiao Mei O?Chapter 16 · The dead are deadChapter 17 · Qin Yu, aren’t you going to take responsibility?Chapter 18 · Xie Wangyuan and his dog are not allowed insideChapter 19 · Got into his carChapter 20 · He really gave me a hard timeChapter 21 · You actually Like that beta?Chapter 22 · Like an Alpha catching his wife cheatingChapter 23 · How do you want me to repay you?Chapter 24 · An Alpha without pheromonesChapter 25 · I’m determined to get my hands on Qin YuChapter 26 · Whatever service you needChapter 27 · Honey, shall I put it on for you?Chapter 28 · Mr. Qin has a rather unique aesthetic senseChapter 29 · Who says Qin Yu is hard to deal with?Chapter 30 · Please teach me, Teacher QinChapter 31 · These are all he can lose.Chapter 32 · I’m looking for someone who has “disappeared”.Chapter 33 · A new meaning in his lifeChapter 34 · Your birthday is in a few days, right?Chapter 35 · Just the two of us.Chapter 36 · It was like Qin Yu’s O-selection banquetChapter 37 · He saw himself clearly in his eyesChapter 38 · Do those Betas really make you this comfortable?Chapter 39 · Qin Yu, you just wait.Chapter 40 · I’m to blame for stealing tonight’s main characterChapter 41 · If you have only one piece of clothing left, you winChapter 42 · I admit defeatChapter 43 · He is my lover!Chapter 44 · What kind of cult is Yuyuan?Chapter 45 · There are no other BetasChapter 46 · Go to bedChapter 47 · Susceptible periodChapter 48 · Qin Yu, are you a damn dog?!Chapter 49 · It would be best to lock us up completelyChapter 50 · I’ll give you five million, leave my sonChapter 51 · Other Alphas smell awfulChapter 52 · He can’t possibly be like those stupid Alpha dogsChapter 53 · Only youChapter 54 · Go ahead and say what you just said again if you dareChapter 55 · I thought you were going to meet someone at night.Chapter 56 · Swallow it.Chapter 57 · Service fee for the second young masterChapter 58 · He touched it himself and showed it to meChapter 59 · To make an Alpha no longer need an OmegaChapter 60 · They’re kindly taking me in?Chapter 61 · Qin Yu is different.Chapter 62 · HelpChapter 63 · At times like this and that with Qin Yu.Chapter 64 · We will never abandon themChapter 65 · My wife’s surname is QinChapter 66 · Two numbersChapter 67 · Qin Yu and dogs are not allowed insideChapter 68 · Eat a lotChapter 69 · It’s a must-eatChapter 70 · Batian misses youChapter 71 · Earn money to support your wife.Chapter 72 · I hug you like a crossChapter 73 · Use these to exchange for a wish.Chapter 74 · Extra 1Chapter 75 · Extra 2Chapter 76 · Extra 3Chapter 77 · Extra 4Chapter 78 · Extra 5Chapter 79 · Extra 6Chapter 80 · Extra 7Chapter 81 · Extra 8Chapter 82 · Extra 9Chapter 83 · Extra 10Chapter 84 · Extra 11Chapter 85 · Extra 12